Adapters for machines for preparing beverages such as espresso coffee are known which comprise generically a supporting element, which is adapted to be connected to the beverage preparation machine, and on which a cartridge holder is mounted which is adapted to contain the cartridge or cartridges through which hot water, dispensed by the machine, is filtered under pressure, in order to obtain the beverage or infusion.
From the functional point of view, the cartridge holder is associated with the supporting element in order to allow the operations for loading and/or unloading the cartridges, as well as the arrangement of the cartridge holder in an active position for providing the infusion and in an inactive position to allow the operations for cleaning the adapter.
Aside from the fact of providing one or more cartridges, these conventional adapters are not devoid of drawbacks, which include the fact that the movement of the cartridge holder with respect to the supporting element, in order to perform the functions described previously, is entrusted to complicated kinematic systems that make the adapter structurally complex and expensive as well.
Another drawback of conventional adapters is in the fact that, in order to perform the operations for loading and/or unloading the cartridges and for cleaning, complete extraction of the cartridge holder from the supporting element is not provided.
In fact, this extraction typically can be achieved only by disassembling, where possible and with difficulty on the part of the average user, the cartridge holder from the supporting element.